Lumio (formerly SMART Learning Suite Online) is a great instructional tool for teachers comfortable with SMART Notebook software. Now, a teacher can teach with a Notebook file, PowerPoint presentation, or PDF document from any device that has an internet connection, even if Notebook is not installed. This also means that students can use Notebook lesson files without having SMART Notebook installed.

One of the new features of Lumio is the ability for students to get back into the teacher’s lesson outside of school hours. A teacher can have students explore lesson ideas in the classroom, then finish up at home or on the weekend. Below is a description of how a teacher can give access to students, then some classroom ideas. Read on!

Giving students access to Lumio (after hours):

1. Log in to your Lumio file collection.  Choose a file that you have already uploaded into your library.
2. As you hover your mouse over the tile of your chosen lesson, click on the three dots in the lower right corner.  In this “More” tool, you’ll see the “Share Link …” tool.  Click on it.

3. In the next window, you can copy the lesson’s link (URL address), to be shared with your students through Google Classroom or email.  Note that a few days later, you can come back to this same place and ”Stop sharing” to turn off access.

Curriculum connections and classroom ideas:

Let’s say that you have started a lesson in class. Your students have Chromebooks and are watching as you guide your presentation in Teacher Mode from the sharing tool. At some point, you’ll switch to Student Mode and give them access to go through your slides on their own. As class time runs out, you can copy your lesson’s link (see # 3 above) and post it in Google Classroom for those students who need more time to finish.

In Lumio, you can add a page within your presentation slides to enhance their experience. One of the choices is to create an on the spot Shout it Out! activity, which allows them to respond to your question. This could be a “do now” or exit slip, for example. Again, if time runs out, students need to research something, or watch a video first before they respond, you can give them out-of-class access to finish up later.

In the course of the teacher’s presentation, we realize that some things can be skipped for now, then finished up outside of class.  Click on the Page Sorter tool in the lower left of the screen to see which pages can/should be done later.  Assign these pages in class, share the link, then finish up your discussion during the next class period.

Have fun with Lumio and this great feature to allow your students access to your lesson pages after class is over. Share your other ideas with us! Email us your classroom success stories and ideas at Training@teachingthings.com or leave a comment down below.

Not only do we provide CTLE approved professional development, by certified teachers for certified teachers, on all STEM products, but we also have iBlocks– instructional blocks customized to meet the needs of your students. With our help, you’ll be using all the STEM equipment you’ve purchased and be delivering lessons far beyond your wildest dreams. Find out more about iBlocks.

For more tips, tricks, and tools for teaching in and out of the classroom, check out more articles on the Teq Talk blog.

We also offer virtual professional development, training, and remote learning support for educators with OTIS for educators. Explore the technology, tools, and strategies that can spark student success — no matter where teaching or learning are happening.